High School Participation Increases for 27th Consecutive Year

INDIANAPOLIS, IN – Led by an encouraging report in football participation nationwide, the number of participants in high school sports increased for the 27th consecutive year in 2015-16 according to the annual High School Athletics Participation Survey conducted by the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS).

Based on figures from the 51 NFHS member state high school associations (which includes the District of Columbia), the number of participants in high school sports reached an all-time high of 7,868,900 – an increase of 61,853 from the previous year.

After a decline of almost 10,000 participants in football the previous year, the number of boys playing 11-player football in 2015 was almost identical to 2014 with a drop of just 309 – from 1,083,617 to 1,083,308.

Georgia is ranked 13th among member states with 200,226 participants (120,510 boys; 79,746 girls).